Incumbent Sue W. Kelly took office as part of the Republican Class of 1994 that campaigned on Newt Gingrich’s Contract With America. As she seeks a seventh term in a district without a clear registration advantage, her campaign’s Web site makes no mention of her party affiliation.

Ms. Kelly swamped token opposition in her last few re-election races, but four Democrats are vying to challenge her this time. Judy Aydelott, a civil attorney from Westchester County, held an early fund-raising advantage over the field, but her 2003 switch from the G.O.P., which she’s attributed to her opposition to the war in Iraq, kept some party leaders from embracing her.

Three of the district’s five county committees endorsed John Hall, an activist and musician who co-wrote the 1970’s hits “Dance With Me” and “Still the One” as a founder of the band Orleans. An organizer of the “No Nukes” concerts at Madison Square Garden in 1979, he later served one term in the Ulster County Legislature.

Ben Shuldiner, a Crompond native who founded and serves as principal at the High School for Public Service in Brooklyn, and Darren Rigger, a political consultant from Peekskill, are making their first runs for office. -- DAVID STABA